Tidal water prompts complaint

by Lisa Neff. Islander Reporter

Coarse rock will be placed into a ditch on 29th Street in Holmes Beach to address the complaint of a property owner displeased with drainage improvements in the area.

Lea Ducket owns a duplex in the 400 block of 29th Street, where she complained to city hall that at high tide water flows from wetlands on the edge of Anna Maria Sound into the ditch along 29th Street near Avenue C.

“What started out as a small ditch is now a retention pond,” Ducket said. “We’ve created a canal on my street. And, if you come out at high tide, you’ll see it’s flowing inland.”

The city invested in a major stormwater drainage improvement program in the 29th Street area last fall.

Since then, a number of neighborhood residents have said that they are pleased with the project, noting that regular rainfall now drains from the streets rather than collecting in the intersections or their yards.

But Ducket questioned the project’s success. She said the ditch near her property hinders access to her front door and her ability to bring a boat trailer onto her property.